every way. Even the way I think.”
Hunter rolled his eyes and groaned. “You have another one of those political arguments with Bill?”
Jack nodded. “Yeah, I was over here one morning last week after we blasted that town in Afghanistan with cruise missiles, and Bill and I got into it.”
“You call him Attila the Hun again?”
Hunter knew him so well. “Nah, this time I called him Adolph. I’m tired of calling him Attila.”
“Did he tell you how you’re nothing but a bleeding heart liberal, and how you have no idea what it takes to run this country? And how you have no respect for the men and women of honor who keep you safe at night?”
“Doesn’t he always? And, for the record, I do have respect for those people, a lot of respect.”
“I know you do. You just wanted to see how hard you could get that vein in his forehead pumping, right?”
Hunter knew him so
damn
well. “I just think the United States ought to act with more compassion. Being the bully never makes anyone respect you. It pisses people off and makes them do stupid things. It makes teenagers take guns to school. And it makes terrorists fly planes into buildings.”
Hunter gazed out at the pastures. “Yeah, but I’m not sure compassion is the way either. Not with the freaks we’re fighting now.”
“Not you too, pal.”
“You know which side I come down on, Jack. You always have. Maybe I’m not as far right as Bill, but every once in a while we have to back up our rhetoric with some serious action. That is, if the rhetoric’s ever going to mean anything.”
“Even if that action means we kill children?”
Hunter rolled his eyes. “Come on, Jack, that’s not fair.”
“OK, OK.” Hunter was right. That wasn’t fair. “Do you have a problem with us torturing people we believe might be terrorists?”
Hunter thought about it for a few moments. “No, I don’t. I mean, as long as we’re pretty positive they are.”
“Jesus Christ, Hunt. You’re just like Bill. Down deep you think we ought to wipe those people off the face of the earth.”
“I do not,
damn it
. But I don’t want to be on top of the new World Trade Tower one day and see a plane hit the building twenty stories below me.” Hunter shut his eyes tightly. “I still think about those poor people who had to choose between being incinerated or jumping from a hundred stories up that morning. And I’m sorry, but I don’t have a problem with some water-boarding if that keeps the skies over our country safe. Or whatever else they use to make those people talk.”
“What if it’s you someday?”
Hunter gave Jack a WTF look. “What are you talking about?”
“What if they arrest you and start asking you crazy questions about things you’ve said on the phone or they want to know about people you’ve met with? What if they tie you upside down on a plank and start dumping cold water down your nose? What then, Hunt?”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“Is it?”
“Of course it is. No one’s going to arrest me for being a terrorist.”
“How do you know? They didn’t even give that guy in Yemen last year a chance to be tortured. He was an American citizen and they murdered him in his convoy.”
Hunter stared at Jack for several moments, as though he couldn’t believe what he’d just heard. “Are you talking about al-Awlaki? The dude who was a senior al-Qaeda guy?”
“Right,” Jack agreed. “That guy.”
“Come on, pal. Buy a ticket on the real world train and come to sanity town where it’s always warm and sunny. We’ve got a nice couch waiting for you on the—”
“How do you know he was an al-Qaeda leader?”
Hunter winced as though he were in serious physical pain. “I know what you’re going to say, Jack, but even the
New York
Fucking
Times
said he was. That wasn’t a case of our government lying to us, not even close. That was a bad dude we killed.”
“You never know, Hunter. I think we have to be very careful when we start
Hunter rolled his eyes and groaned. “You have another one of those political arguments with Bill?”
Jack nodded. “Yeah, I was over here one morning last week after we blasted that town in Afghanistan with cruise missiles, and Bill and I got into it.”
“You call him Attila the Hun again?”
Hunter knew him so well. “Nah, this time I called him Adolph. I’m tired of calling him Attila.”
“Did he tell you how you’re nothing but a bleeding heart liberal, and how you have no idea what it takes to run this country? And how you have no respect for the men and women of honor who keep you safe at night?”
“Doesn’t he always? And, for the record, I do have respect for those people, a lot of respect.”
“I know you do. You just wanted to see how hard you could get that vein in his forehead pumping, right?”
Hunter knew him so
damn
well. “I just think the United States ought to act with more compassion. Being the bully never makes anyone respect you. It pisses people off and makes them do stupid things. It makes teenagers take guns to school. And it makes terrorists fly planes into buildings.”
Hunter gazed out at the pastures. “Yeah, but I’m not sure compassion is the way either. Not with the freaks we’re fighting now.”
“Not you too, pal.”
“You know which side I come down on, Jack. You always have. Maybe I’m not as far right as Bill, but every once in a while we have to back up our rhetoric with some serious action. That is, if the rhetoric’s ever going to mean anything.”
“Even if that action means we kill children?”
Hunter rolled his eyes. “Come on, Jack, that’s not fair.”
“OK, OK.” Hunter was right. That wasn’t fair. “Do you have a problem with us torturing people we believe might be terrorists?”
Hunter thought about it for a few moments. “No, I don’t. I mean, as long as we’re pretty positive they are.”
“Jesus Christ, Hunt. You’re just like Bill. Down deep you think we ought to wipe those people off the face of the earth.”
“I do not,
damn it
. But I don’t want to be on top of the new World Trade Tower one day and see a plane hit the building twenty stories below me.” Hunter shut his eyes tightly. “I still think about those poor people who had to choose between being incinerated or jumping from a hundred stories up that morning. And I’m sorry, but I don’t have a problem with some water-boarding if that keeps the skies over our country safe. Or whatever else they use to make those people talk.”
“What if it’s you someday?”
Hunter gave Jack a WTF look. “What are you talking about?”
“What if they arrest you and start asking you crazy questions about things you’ve said on the phone or they want to know about people you’ve met with? What if they tie you upside down on a plank and start dumping cold water down your nose? What then, Hunt?”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“Is it?”
“Of course it is. No one’s going to arrest me for being a terrorist.”
“How do you know? They didn’t even give that guy in Yemen last year a chance to be tortured. He was an American citizen and they murdered him in his convoy.”
Hunter stared at Jack for several moments, as though he couldn’t believe what he’d just heard. “Are you talking about al-Awlaki? The dude who was a senior al-Qaeda guy?”
“Right,” Jack agreed. “That guy.”
“Come on, pal. Buy a ticket on the real world train and come to sanity town where it’s always warm and sunny. We’ve got a nice couch waiting for you on the—”
“How do you know he was an al-Qaeda leader?”
Hunter winced as though he were in serious physical pain. “I know what you’re going to say, Jack, but even the
New York
Fucking
Times
said he was. That wasn’t a case of our government lying to us, not even close. That was a bad dude we killed.”
“You never know, Hunter. I think we have to be very careful when we start
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